1. Shared dysregulation of complement and phosphorylation pathways in the cerebrospinal fluid of encephalitis, Aicardi-Goutières syndrome, and autism. Dev Med Child Neurol. 2026.

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2. Abdel-Baki R, Thomassin K. Resources and Access Impact Parental Self-Efficacy in Caregivers of Autistic Children in Ontario Canada. Child Psychiatry Hum Dev. 2026.

Caregivers of autistic children access many resources to support themselves and their children, but little is known about the impact of these resources on parental self-efficacy. To address this gap, we interviewed 18 caregivers of autistic children in Ontario, Canada about the factors and resources that have impacted their parental self-efficacy. Reflexive thematic analysis revealed four themes: Circle of Support, Mastery Experiences, Self-Care, and System Knowledge and Access. Study results support the tenet that mastery experiences are a primary source of self-efficacy, while also offering new insights into factors that can impact parental self-efficacy. Importantly, System Knowledge and Access was found to have an overarching and pervasive impact on parental self-efficacy such that service barriers and a lack of system transparency decreased caregivers’ parental self-efficacy. Policy and clinical implications are discussed, including the importance of clear and transparent processes for caregivers to access services, shorter waitlists, and caregiver-centered supports.

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3. Borloz E, de Combarieu C, Bourcin L, Felix MS, Fulachier C, Mazet B, Roux JC. Alteration of cholinergic pathway in the enteric nervous system of a mouse model of Rett syndrome. Neurobiol Dis. 2026; 229: 107597.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Rett syndrome (RTT) is a severe neurological disorder caused by pathogenic variants in the MECP2 gene associated with gastrointestinal (GI) motility disorders strongly impacting patients’ quality of life. Intestinal motility relies on coordinated neuronal activity in the enteric nervous system (ENS) where MECP2 is highly expressed. Here, we sought to determine whether cholinergic-mediated excitatory neuromuscular transmission could be affected in the ENS of a RTT mouse model and the functional consequences on intestinal motility. METHODS: In this study, 55 days-old wild type (WT) and Mecp2-knock-out (KO) mice were used. After confirming the increase in GI transit time in Mecp2-KO mice in vivo, intestinal mechanical activity was assessed in vitro by evaluating contractile responses of small intestinal muscle to electrical field stimulation (EFS) of the ENS. The function of the cholinergic pathway was evaluated using gene expression, protein, and enzymatic activity quantifications of different factors of the acetylcholine (ACh) metabolism. RESULTS: Our in vivo results confirm that the slowed GI transit previously identified in RTT patients and in the mouse model. In vitro, successive EFS lead to a progressive and rapid decrease in the amplitude of cholinergic contractions in Mecp2-KO mice contrary to WT mice. Levels of ACh are decreased in the ENS of Mecp2-KO mice (-47%, P-value<0.01) due to decreased activity of the synthesizing enzyme choline-acetyltransferase (-39%, P-value = 0.04). In addition to the deficit of ACh, we found that both nicotinic and muscarinic cholinergic receptors are also significantly impacted. CONCLUSION: This is the first report of a major dysfunction of the enteric cholinergic pathway in a mouse model of RTT supporting its direct involvement in GI disorders in this disease. We propose that the rhythmic GI contractions occurring during fed conditions may cause a rapid depletion of the stock of enteric ACh that could largely depress the propulsive efficiency of, or even suppress, peristalsis during digestion.

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4. Chen L, Abate M, Fredericks M, Guo Y, Tao Z. Neural dysfunctions associated with atypical memory in ASD: an ALE meta-analysis. Front Psychiatry. 2026; 17: 1830424.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is now one of the most prevalent neurodevelopmental disorders, characterized by socio-communicative and cognitive challenges. Amongst them, memory challenges in ASD have been reported early, but only recently have studies suggested a prevalent memory impairment in autistic individuals. More importantly, little is known about the brain correlates associated with the memory challenges in ASD. In the current study, we used both quantitative and qualitative approaches to review a total of 42 studies (22 were included in the ALE analysis) to reveal the consistent findings in the literature on the memory functions in ASD, and found that the memory challenges in ASD are probably accompanied by an imbalance between brain functions in the left and right hemispheres, with deficient functions in fronto-parietal regions on the left hemisphere and an excessive engagement of the counterparts on the right hemisphere. In addition, the analysis suggested a top-down deficit from the frontal lobe during the memory tasks, and the atypical functions probably depended on the stimulus format and task types.

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5. Distefano G, Berloffa S, Sesso G, Valente E, Narzisi A, Sorella G, D’Ambrosio C, Masi G, Milone A. Emerging Personality Pathology in Adolescents With Autism Spectrum Disorder: Clinical Correlates and Assessment Implications. Autism. 2026: 13623613261476742.

The link between neurodevelopmental and psychiatric conditions is increasingly recognized in developmental psychiatry, yet the relationship between Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Personality Disorders (PDs) remains underexplored in adolescence. Dysfunctional personality traits (DPT) may emerge in individuals with ASD, especially when diagnosis is delayed and comorbidities occur. This study assessed 79 adolescents (mean age = 15.15 ± 1.50; 45.6% females) with ASD without intellectual disability using a multimodal protocol (Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule-Second Edition [ADOS-2], Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised [ADI-R], Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Fourth Edition [WISC-IV]/Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Fourth Edition [WAIS-IV], Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-5 Personality Disorders [SCID-5-PD], Kiddie Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia-Present and Lifetime Version [K-SADS-PL], standardized questionnaires). Analyses examined associations between DPT, psychiatric comorbidities, clinical severity, and functioning. DPTs were identified in 64.5% of participants, more frequently in females (75.0%) than males (48.9%). A prior ASD diagnosis was missing in 62%, particularly among females (odds ratio [OR] = 2.86, p = .030). Cluster A traits were most common (38.0%), notably Schizoid (22.8%), followed by Cluster B (24.1%), with Borderline traits markedly higher in females (22.2% vs. 2.3%, p = .006) and Cluster C (20.3%). DPTs were associated with lower functioning (Children’s Global Assessment Scale [CGAS], p = .037) and higher clinical severity (Clinical Global Impression [CGI], p < .019), also after False Discovery Rate (FDR) correction. Findings indicate that DPTs are highly prevalent yet often unrecognized in adolescents with ASD and are associated with greater comorbidity and poorer psychosocial outcomes. Early, developmentally informed assessment is crucial to identify risks and guide tailored interventions.Lay AbstractAutism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental condition that affects social communication, behavior, and sensory processing. Some autistic adolescents may also show emerging maladaptive personality traits or early features of personality pathology. However, the relationship between ASD and personality disorders has been studied far less than other mental health conditions, especially during adolescence, a key developmental stage. This study included 79 adolescents with ASD without intellectual disability, with an average age of 15 years. Nearly half of the participants were female. Each adolescent completed a comprehensive clinical assessment, including standardized tools for autism diagnosis, psychiatric diagnostic interviews, cognitive testing, and questionnaires on emotional and behavioral functioning. We found that almost two-thirds of participants showed dysfunctional personality traits (DPTs). These traits were more common in females than males. In addition, many adolescents had not received an autism diagnosis before entering the study, and missed or delayed diagnosis was especially frequent among females. This is consistent with growing evidence that autism in girls may be less easily recognized, particularly when symptoms are masked or present differently from traditional expectations. The most common personality patterns involved social withdrawal, emotional detachment, and limited interest in close relationships. Other adolescents showed traits linked to emotional dysregulation, impulsivity, anxiety, perfectionism, or a strong need for control. Adolescents with DPTs also showed greater overall clinical severity and lower psychosocial functioning in everyday life, including difficulties with peers, family relationships, and school adjustment. These findings suggest that emerging personality pathology is common but often overlooked in autistic adolescents. If autism is identified late, emotional and interpersonal difficulties may become more complex over time. Clinicians should assess autistic traits, co-occurring psychiatric symptoms, and maladaptive personality features together, using a developmentally informed approach. Earlier and more accurate recognition may support personalized interventions, reduce distress, and improve outcomes during the transition to adulthood.

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6. Rai A. Request for Clarification and Correction of Internal Inconsistencies in « Neuromimicnet: A Multimodal Neuromorphic Framework for Early Screening and Cognitive Pattern Recognition in Children with Autism » [Letter]. J Multidiscip Healthc. 2026; 19: 649511.

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7. Said K, Mansoor S, Hussain A, Gul W, Siraj S, Hassan MM, Hamayun M. Corrigendum to « Computational identification of AKT1-modulating phytochemicals from Moringa oleifera targeting the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway in autism spectrum disorder » [Comput. Biol. Chem. 124 (2026) 109119]. Comput Biol Chem. 2026: 109372.

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8. Thomas L, Scerif G, Yusuf H, Laird M, Taylor G, Evans NJ, Manning C. Autistic and non-autistic children’s perceptual decision-making in visual orientation and motion tasks and the effect of task instructions. Atten Percept Psychophys. 2026; 88(7).

Diffusion decision models (DDMs) offer the potential to go beyond standard accuracy and response-time indices to better understand perceptual decision-making in autism. One unanswered question is whether autistic participants can flexibly adjust the speed and accuracy of their decision-making according to task demands. Across two preregistered studies, 50 autistic and 50 non-autistic children aged 6-14 years completed a visual orientation task with no explicit instructions to be fast or accurate, and a visual motion task under both speed-emphasis and accuracy-emphasis instructions. These studies allowed us to investigate the influence of task, task instruction and modelling approach on group differences. We fit Bayesian hierarchical DDMs using a rigorous blind modelling approach, and follow-up two-step non-hierarchical analyses. Irrespective of task, instructions, and modelling approach, we found no conclusive evidence for group differences in DDM parameters. For the first time, we showed that autistic children can flexibly adjust their decision-making strategies according to speed-accuracy instructions. These results show that cognitive flexibility is not uniformly reduced in autism. To better understand within-participants variability, we investigated relationships between decision-making parameters and ADHD-related traits, reading ability, sensory processing and coordination skills. We found task-specific evidence for relationships between DDM parameters and sensory underresponsivity, sight-word reading and hyperactivity/impulsivity. Resolving inconsistent results when applying DDMs to autism will require contrasting modelling approaches, clear reporting of task instructions, and considering dimensions that co-occur with autism. OPEN PRACTICES STATEMENT: De-identified data are available in a safeguarded repository on the UK Data Service ( https://doi.org/10.5255/UKDA-SN-858223 ). Experimental code, analysis scripts and output files are available for Study 1 ( https://osf.io/vfqwx/ ) and Study 2 ( https://osf.io/2gyc4/ ). Both Study 1 and Study 2 were preregistered ( https://osf.io/gjksu , https://osf.io/2hdpg/ ). At the point of preregistration, we had collected data from one autistic participant, but we did not look at the data or complete any analyses before preregistration.

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9. Wu H, Shi MG, Chan PW, Song P, Lau SF, Lam GY, Kang X, Wong PCM, Geng X. Autistic children show reduced activity in left superior temporal cortex in response to social-emotional meaning in language. Neuroimage Clin. 2026; 52: 104059.

Autistic children often differ from non-autistic peers in social interaction, emotional processing, and language communication. While the neural differences between autistic and non-autistic children in processing paralinguistic social-emotional cues, such as emotional prosody, are well-documented, much less is known about how the brain processes the social-emotional meaning carried by the language content itself. In non-autistic adults, the left superior temporal sulcus (STS) and adjacent gyrus show a social-emotional bias, responding more strongly to social-emotional content than to content describing inanimate objects. We investigated whether this bias is present in children and whether it is altered in autistic children. We recruited 78 right-handed children who underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scanning while listening to sentences describing either people in emotional situations (social-emotional sentences) or non-human objects, events, or concepts (object sentences). After excluding those with excessive head motion, we analyzed data from 58 of them (37 autistic and 21 non-autistic; mean age 10 years). Across the sample as a whole, the left STS responded more strongly to social-emotional sentences than to object sentences, indicating that this social-emotional bias is already present in childhood. Importantly, this bias was reduced in autistic children compared to non-autistic controls, whereas no group difference was observed in general auditory or lexico-syntactic processing. This reduced activity in the left STS in response to social-emotional semantics may contribute to autistic children’s social communication challenges.

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